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2017 Playoffs: Game 3 Recap - Raptors 77, Bucks 104

Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com

IT WAS OVER WHEN

the Bucks opened the fourth quarter with a 32-point lead. Milwaukee led by 20 points after the opening quarter and they didn’t look back from there, picking up a 104-77 victory to take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 will tip off in Milwaukee on Saturday at 3 P.M. ET.

BEHIND FROM THE BEGINNING

The Raptors couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start on Thursday. While they struggled to score, making just 4-of-18 field goals to shoot 22 percent, they also failed to provide any type of resistance for the Bucks who made 14-of-21 field goals to shoot 67 percent. Toronto was scoreless on six attempts from beyond the arc while Milwaukee connected on 4-of-7 3-point field goals to hold a dominant 20-point lead at the end of the opening 12 minutes. Khris Middleton scored 11 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 10 as the two combined to score 21 points on 9-of-11 field goals to lead the Bucks to a 32-12 advantage.

CONTINUING TO STRUGGLE

The offence continued to stall in the second as the Raptors shot just 3-for-12 in the quarter, making 25 percent of their field goals. Toronto simply couldn’t get any kind of offensive flow while the Bucks continued to score with relative ease. Greg Monroe came off the bench to score 12 points for the Bucks while the Raptors were led by DeMar DeRozan’s eight points, all from the free throw line. Milwaukee outscored Toronto 25-18 in the quarter. Toronto had just seven field goals and four assists in the first half as the Bucks took a 57-30 advantage at the break.

MORE OF THE SAME IN THE SECOND

The third was a repeat of the first half as Toronto recorded just two assists on six made field goals, failing to reach 20 points for the third consecutive quarter. The Bucks stretched their lead to 34 points with less than a minute remaining in the third before heading into the final quarter up by 32 points. With Delon Wright and Norman Powell playing the entire fourth, Toronto had its best scoring quarter of the game, putting up 31 points, but it was much too late to spark a comeback. The fourth was the only quarter that Toronto outscored Milwaukee, but the Bucks were solid from start to finish, refusing to allow the Raptors a window to get back into the game.

RAPTORS PLAYER OF THE GAME

Delon Wright came off the bench to score 13 points in 27 minutes. He shot 4-for-6 from the floor, including 2-for-3 from beyond the arc and 3-for-5 from the free throw line. He added six rebounds and two assists.

UNDERRATED RAPTORS PLAYER OF THE GAME

Norman Powell came into the game late in the second half to score 12 points in 15 minutes. He shot 4-for-8 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Powell added three rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot as he did his best to provide energy off the bench.

THAT'S A RAP...

“Use it as motivation. Use everything that happened tonight, that's going to come with the next 24 hours, use it as motivation. And as competitors, be back ready for Saturday.”- DeMar DeRozan on what to take from the loss and how to move forward to Game 4

BY THE #'S

34...Percent shooting for the Raptors, 53 percent shooting for the Bucks.

29...Assists for Milwaukee on 39 made field goals compared to just 11 assists on 24 made field goals for Toronto.

12...made 3-pointers for the Bucks (12-for-23, 52 percent), compared to just six for Toronto (6-for-22, 27 percent). The Raptors had 14 made 3-pointers in Game 2.

19...Points, eight rebounds, four assists, two steals, two blocked shots for Giannis Antetokounmpo who shot 7-for-10 from the floor.

THEY SAID IT...

“The key that we have to do is we have to make sure we pass the basketball. I don’t even know how many assists we had tonight, we go from 24 to whatever we had tonight and that’s where it starts. It’s moving the basketball, the basketball will find the right person and that’s what we’ve got to do. That’s what myself and our staff have to sell the guys on: You have to move the basketball. You’re not going to dribble around them, you’re not going to out-run them or out-quick them but the ball can beat speed and quickness. That’s what we did in Game 2 and that’s what we have to get back to.”- Dwane Casey on what needs to happen in Game 4

“We’ve got to come out and be aggressive. This is what we’re made for. This is playoff basketball. When you’ve got your backs against the wall you’ve got to come out and you’ve got to respond. I feel like we’re going to do it. I’ve got confidence in this group. I’ve got confidence in the coaching staff that they’re going to give us a game plan and we’re going to go out and execute. No one is down in here. We’re going to keep our spirits high. We understand we came out here to get two games, but we didn’t get two, so let’s try and get one.”- DeMarre Carroll on what needs to happen in Game 4

“Play harder, period. Who ever plays the hardest is going to win. If we don’t go out and hit them and be aggressive and go at them, then they’re just going to go at us, period.”- P.J. Tucker on what the team could have done differently in the loss

“I still think we can win the series. It ain't over. It just sucks right now, it's a terrible night right now, it's a terrible feeling the way we just got our *** beat. Terrible feeling. So we'd better pick it up. If not, it's going to be a terrible feeling again. But our confidence has not changed. We'll be fine. We've got to come out there and do what we gotta do Saturday.”- Kyle Lowry on remaining confident and looking forward to Game 4

UP NEXT:

Game 4 will tip off at 3 P.M. ET on Saturday in Milwaukee.